3 Answers

My mother once had a roommate in the nursing home who got up every 30 seconds and went into the bathroom. She’d be in there for a few minutes. Then she’d come back and lie down. I’m certain she didn’t “go”. My mother was upset by that for a pretty good reason. She was fearful that if she ever needed to use the toilet the woman would either be in there or walk in on her. The woman also wandered out of the room and then asked everyone where her room was even if she was standing right there.

The nurse mentioned to me it was an anxiety issue with the woman. She said it got worse as night fell, which indicated Sundowning. If your mom isn’t on an anxiety medication, do you think it might help?

My mother's spinal stenosis causes unpredictable bladder spasms and she is slow to get out of bed and make it to the commode at night or first thing in the morning due to joint stiffness and some balance problems not helped by one leg being 1/2" shorter following hip replacement surgery over 20 years ago. Bed pads didn't work all that well because they never seemed to be in the right place when they were needed. I have textured carpet in her bedroom both for warmth and as better non-slip walking surface so it's not fun to need to spot clean that very often. So I developed a easy cleanup strategy based on what I used with the kids' toddler beds.

Walmart has an inexpensive quilted water proof polyester mattress pad that is very comfortable to sleep on. I buy two mattress pads and two matching sheet sets. I place fitted polyester mattress pad, then incontinence pad, then fitted sheet. Mom wears a incontinence panty overnight. Most nights everything is still dry in the morning or only the panty is damp. Sometimes the bed sheet is wet and maybe once or twice a month the mattress pad is damp. In any case, I have a clean matching "spare" immediately available so I strip the wet sheet and pad, make the bed back up with the spare and throw the wet stuff in the washer with a little white vinegar. No more spot cleaning the carpet.

Does your mother really feel the need every two hours or is this a habit? I often drink a quart or so while reading before sleep - with the predicable result that I wake in the middle of the night with a full bladder. When I wake in the night from back pain or sinus congestion, I often head for the commode from sheer habit. Could your mother be doing the same?

I can't imagine she has much left over if she is getting up so often, how wet is she in the morning? I'll toss out some thoughtsHopefully you are using a waterproof mattress cover and washable or disposable pads on the bed. Perhaps it is too much for her to change the pad, maybe have a few pairs of panties with pad inserted ready to go by the toiletTalk to the doctor about her need to get up so much at night, either trying to eliminate the urge to go or to help her sleep through (or both)

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